Queen City Merge entrepreneurs' answer to 'why can't we do that?'

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Inspired Cincinnati is The Enquirer's project on people who are working to make this a better place for all of us. They work in the arts, community service, their own businesses. They all believe you can create something new, exciting and fresh in Cincinnati.

About QC Merge

• What: A gathering for developers, marketers, designers and social media experts. • When: May 9 and 10 at the Contemporary Arts Center, Downtown. • Who: Speakers Greg Hardman, CEO of Christian Moerlein; Nate Westheimer, a New York-based entrepreneur and early stage investor; and Sara Chipps, a developer at Girl Develop It. • What else: Attendees have access to Ignite Cincinnati on May 9 and the Reds-Brewers game May 10. • How: To sign up and learn more, go to www.qcmerge.com.

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Why can’t we do that here?

It’s a good question to keep asking as the region leverages existing resources, and creates new ones, to jump-start and support promising startups.

It’s also the question that Chris Moore, a developer at Blue Ash-based Gaslight, asked a few years ago after attending Converge SE, a three-day conference on design, development, business and marketing in South Carolina.

Moore’s answer is the second annual Queen City Merge, a two-day conference for developers, marketers, designers and social media experts at the Contemporary Arts Center. It’s set for May 9 and 10 in collaboration with Ignite Cincinnati, in which people present their passions in five-minute speed talks.

Events like QC Merge are important as this region strengthens its entrepreneurial infrastructure. In a narrow sense, the workshops and panel discussions offer actionable information for participants.

More broadly, QC Merge will bring a cross-section of entrepreneurs, technical talent and big ideas together in one place.

“QC Merge gives the Cincinnati tech ecosystem an opportunity to learn from outsiders. Our city needs this type of conference to exchange ideas, network and generally geek out in a way that many of us can do regularly,” said entrepreneur Chris Bergman, co-founder and CEO of ChoreMonster.

Group of designers collaborated for event

Moore and colleagues from Gaslight, two founders of Downtown-based Ample and developer Gerard Sychay collaborated to launch the first QC Merge in 2012. Gaslight and Ample both do digital design and development work. Gaslight’s clients include Procter & Gamble and the startup Road Trippers. Ample created The Brandery’s logo and manages its digital presence.

Moore, who attended the University of Cincinnati, was struck by the wide range of offerings at the South Carolina event.

“I realized there were a ton of things that were interesting that I had no clue about. You might do marketing work all day, you might do design work all day, you might do development work all day, but you have to do all of it to get something off the ground and start up a company,” Moore said.

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“The more we know about the other disciplines and the other people doing it, the better we all are.”

“It wasn’t something I’ve seen other conferences do in town, which is showcasing Cincinnati, and Cincinnati talent,” Uhlenbrock said. “A lot of people have that Midwestern work ethic, and they’re loyal to their company. I think that’s a good thing. But just because people aren’t advertising and available doesn’t mean they’re not here.”

Tammy Gambrel, a Gaslight web designer who spent much of her career with nonprofits, secured space at Downtown’s CAC. Last year’s conference, which ended with a Friday night Reds game outing, attracted several sponsors.

In addition to designers and developers, Barnett said representatives from organizations including Kroger and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center attended.

It drew about 110 participants, including people from Phoenix, Chicago, Indianapolis and Lexington.

“We had people here in town who came Downtown and said, ‘There’s a lot of cool stuff here,’ ” Moore said. “We need to point it out, we need to take advantage of it.”

Partnering with Ignite Cincinnati

QC Merge’s new dimension this year is collaborating with Ignite Cincinnati, which is expected to draw about 600 people to Memorial Hall on May 9. Merge participants get entry to the Ignite event.

The ninth Ignite Cincinnati will feature about 12 speakers, still to be named, from the region’s creative, technical and business fields. Speakers get five minutes to present topics about which they are passionate.

“The thing that makes startups interesting to me is they’re a neat combination of being creative and technical. All the coolest projects are both at the same time. That’s the kind of crowd that I’ve always tried to get into Ignite,” Pantuso said. “The more we stir people and ideas up, the more new combinations have the potential to come out of it.”

Pantuso, an entrepreneur and angel investor, believes in helping create impromptu connections that start with getting talented people together.

“The interesting ideas are almost always accidental. The only way you’re going to get really interesting new stuff happening is to create opportunities for luck,” he said.

Barnett, from Gaslight, says that’s why he supports QC Merge, and why Gaslight plans to move to Over-the-Rhine, which has become the center of this region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

“The two components of any good web startup are the idea guy and the tech guy,” he said. “To have our two crowds bumping into each other frequently is a good thing.”■